Halloween Scream
by Cardinal Robbins
Summary: Halloween trick or treating gets a new twist, when the Sixteenth does it. John & Fin pull a trick on Sarah Zelman, who's brought treats. Will she get them back? SVU AU


Disclaimer: Not mine, but I'd like them to belong to me.

"Halloween Scream"

by Cardinal Robbins

My entire body jumped as I heard a scream in the bullpen.

It was Sarah, seated at a desk directly in front of me. I was too shocked to immediately respond, because I'd never heard her shriek like that before.

"Son of a -- " she clipped the last word of the epithet as she smashed a tissue box down on her desk. "Where in the hell -- " She saw something move and again the box came down with full force. 

"What are you doing?" I asked, wondering if she'd lost her mind. Zelman scrutinized her desk and found her target, now smashing it repeatedly with a couple of case files. "Have you gone completely insane?"

"Damned spider on my desk! Don't just sit there -- help me!" she shot back, her tone of voice determined. "I'm going to kill the little mother -- " SLAM! Down went the case files again and she gave a triumphant shout.

"Hey, girlfriend," Fin Tutuola said, laughing, "congratulations. You beat the hell outta my toy spider." He walked over to her desk, took the casefiles from her hand and picked up the plastic arachnid. "Happy Halloween." He laughed louder and pulled a thread, the spider dancing across his hand.

"You jerk!" she yelled, loud enough to bring Elliot and Olivia over to gather around her and Fin. "You!" She pointed an accusing finger at me and I could stand it no longer. I grinned like a fool. Busted.

"Okay," I finally admitted. "I told him you were an arachnophobe, but I didn't know he was going to use it against you."

"Oh, John... You are going to be lonely tonight," Stabler teased. "Paybacks are hell, guys," he said as he turned to Sarah. "Just remember I had no part in this!"

Olivia laughed and offered, "If you want revenge, count me in."

"I'll keep all that in mind," Sarah said, shaking her head and turning back to her computer. "You and Fin are in MAJOR trouble," she said quietly, causing me to wonder if she'd already plotted a payback.

She refused to eat lunch with either of us that day. Instead, she went out.

Custom was, everyone kept candy on their desks for Halloween.

We weren't allowed to dress up, but we would visit each desk and snidely say, "Trick or treat," as we delved into the candy jar. The only provisos were that you couldn't see inside the candy jar -- and no trading. What you got was what you kept.

I could always count on two things: Cap filled his gaudy plastercraft pumpkin with full-sized Snickers bars, and Liv always had a frosted glass cannister almost brimming with packets of M&Ms.

This year, Elliot had a plastic 'haunted house' cookie jar, with the bargain mix from the neighborhood 99-Cents store. I pulled out a Tootsie pop and smiled. "Thanks, Elliot. Happy Halloween."

"Maybe you can tell us how many licks to the center," Olivia teased. I could tell she wasn't referring to the candy and I raised my brows, giving her a look. Behind me, I heard Zelman giggle softly.

Before I could scavenge Sarah's desk for sugar, Fin beat me to it.

"Hey, girl, what are you giving out this time?" he asked. "Is it safe to put my hand in there?" He eyed the bright orange candy jar as he would a dangerous perp.

"You can put your hand in there," she said. "It's safe, I promise." She leaned back in her chair, a wry smile on her face.

Slowly, hesitantly, I watched as Tutuola put his hand in the container and felt around inside. "No booby-traps," he admitted, "all candy." He pulled out a piece in a bright red wrapper. "This looks good."

He unwrapped it and popped it into his mouth. Sarah shrugged and turned back to her paperwork.

I went over, reached in and pulled out a piece in a green wrapper. Following Fin's example, I popped it into my mouth.

Stabler followed suit, as did Olivia and Cap. Each pulled out a different color, all of them as eager to sample the candy as Fin and I had been.

A moment later, Fin swore and raced for the men's room. I had heard him yell, "HOT!" as he flew past. Looking immediately at Sarah, her face was as placid as --

It was at that moment, the tears started to flow down my cheeks uncontrollably and I grabbed frantically for a tissue. The box was gone. Zelman had taken it from my desk, knowing I'd need one to spit the candy into. She'd hit me with a Super Sour Baby and my mind screamed as loudly as my tattered tastebuds. "Aaaaargh! Disgusting! Sarah -- you -- !"

I leaned over my wastebasket and forcefully spit the candy out. The entire bullpen erupted in laughter, except for Fin and I.

Oddly, no one else in the bullpen had fallen victim to her cruel hoax.

I saw her smile -- it was demonic. No other word for it. Satan's daughter.

"Paybacks are hell," she said simply. And then she laughed like something from the bowels of Hades.

Once recovered enough to talk, I asked her how she'd spared everyone else from the 'candy of the damned', especially knowing how Cragen would have reacted had he tasted something so vile.

"Gee, I guess you two didn't get the memo," she said brightly. "I sent everyone else a text message, warning them."

Come to think of it, no one else had eaten theirs...

A set-up.

Cragen laughed; something we didn't hear very often.

"Happy Halloween, everyone," Cap said, walking back into his office wearing a big grin.

# # #


End file.
